0T - SOME WONDERFUL ADVICE | Arthritis Information
I was sent this by a friend, I think some of the points are very wise and humorous
Written By Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The Plain Dealer, Cleveland , Ohio
"To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me. It is the most-requested column I've ever written."
My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more:
1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck..
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present...
12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.
16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20... When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
21... Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words 'In five years, will this matter?'
27. Always choose life.
28. Forgive everyone everything.
29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.
31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
33. Believe in miracles.
34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.
35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.
37. Your children get only one childhood.
38... All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's,we'd grab ours back.
41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
42. The best is yet to come.
43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
44. Yield.
45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift."
| | | | | | | | | | | |
Check
this out...
I enjoyed that, Sandra..thanks for sharing
I can't tell you how many times I've heard that in the last month.
Every day a dozen people e-mail me about being 90 years old:
"Regina, would you please explain this 90-year-old person? . . . It
seems you are aging rapidly. God bless you and your aged bones.
"I Googled you and your picture appears to be that of a 40 -
50-year-old woman. Would you please tell me how old you really are?"
• May 28, 2006: Regina Brett's 45 life lessons and 5 to grow on
My favorite? Stephen wrote: "You sure look good for 90 years
old! Assuming that the picture in the PD is a recent one. Do you have a
painting of you in your attic that is getting really REALLY old
looking?"
No, there's no Dorian Gray picture decay going on.
Beware the Internet. It can age you. I once wrote the 45 Lessons
Life Taught Me, then added five more lessons when I turned 50 in 2006.
Next thing I know, the lessons ended up e-mailed everywhere. Only
someone changed my age. It now reads: "Written by Regina Brett, 90
years old."
For the record: I turned 53. In May.
Elaine was confused when she saw my picture
online. "It didn't appear to be that of a 90-year-old. Either that, or
besides being blessed with a long productive life, you also have a
secret for retaining remarkable age-defying skin!"
I hit the big time last week. I am officially an Urban Legend. You can find me on Snopes.com, right up there with myths on baby carrots, Wal-mart flip-flops, glurge and asparagus vs. cancer.
One lady felt let down: "I found out you were only 50. What a
disappointment! Somehow I guess, someone thought your words would be
better if you were 90."
I'm not sure how to break the news to Berthabelle in Eugene, Ore.
She wrote: "We are the same age except I was born on November 1, 1918.
Hope some day we can hear from one another. Isn't it great that we are
both ninety? Lovingly, Bertie."
People have written from Australia to Zanesville, from Korea,
India, Shanghai and all over Canada. Some have rearranged the lessons.
Dian from Chula Vista, Calif., wrote, "My list of 45 included the last
5 of your list of 50. Somebody must have deleted and renumbered it.
Maybe your secretary can edit it."
The closest thing I have to a secretary is my husband. He's the one
who asked me to set the record straight after a local business leader
asked him if my mother was 90 and wrote those lessons.
Some folks are missing No. 45: The best is yet to come.
And it is. You can read more about the lessons in April when Grand
Central Publishing releases my book, "God Never Blinks: 50 Lessons for
Life's Little Detours."
It will answer questions like the one Marlene wrote: "With regard
to your life Lesson #28, can you please explain why and how you should
forgive everyone everything?"
I'm grateful to all who forwarded the e-mail and kept my name on
it. Last week I received an anonymous essay about the cost of raising a
child. It seemed oddly familiar.
"What do you get for your money? Naming rights. First, middle and
last. Glimpses of God every day. Giggles under the covers every night.
More love than your heart can hold. Butterfly kisses and Velcro hugs. A
hand to hold, usually covered with jam . . ."
Wait a minute. I wrote that nine years ago.
When I was 100.
Wow.I also like, growing old beats the alternative, dying young!!!!!Also like, when in doubt, take the next small step.
[QUOTE=Jan Lucinda]Also like, when in doubt, take the next small step.[/QUOTE]
L
Copyright ArthritisInsight.com